A row between a university law lecturer and his landlords turned violent as his lawyer wife threw buckets of water over them and he drove at them in his car, a court heard today.
Dr Peter Orji, 43, allegedly threatened to 'torch' the £400,000 detached house they were renting after their landlord was given a court order forcing him and his wife, Chinenye, to move out.
A court heard landlord Navraj Singh and his brother Sukhdip, a police officer, then turned up to change the locks but when Dr Orji and his wife arrived to collect possessions he tried to run the Singh brothers over.
Dr Peter Orji, 43, (left) allegedly threatened to 'torch' the £400,000 detached house they were renting after their landlord was given a court order forcing him and his wife, Chinenye, to move out. They are seen today outside Southampton Magistrates Court
The following day, prosecutors say the Orjis returned to the four bedroom house in Southampton, with Dr Orji knocking Sukhdip to the ground after running at him 'like a rugby player'.
As that happened, Mrs Orji allegedly armed herself with a foot-long metal pole and struck the Singhs' friend Martin Conlon on the head before slapping Navraj's iPhone from his hand as he tried to call the police.
Dr Orji currently teaches law at the University of Brighton, East Sussex, specialising in property and e-commerce law, and has also taught at Kingston University in London.
His wife studied law at the University of Benin, before working as a lawyer for the education support company she and her husband founded.
Southampton Magistrates' Court today heard the Orjis became enraged when they arrived at the house they had been renting to find their former landlords changing the locks.
Prosecutor Harrison Willis told the court on March 25, last year, Dr Orji told his landlords he would burn down their house in Southampton, Hants, before trying to run them over.
A day later, the prosecutor said the law lecturer's wife threw buckets of water over the Singh brothers and their friends.
It was heard Mrs Orji also hit one of the Singhs friends with a metal pole and slapped Navraj's £700 iPhone from his hand, smashing it.
Opening the case, Mr Willis said: 'Both defendants were former tenants who had been given notice to be removed from the property by March 20, last year.
'When Navraj and Sukhdip went to the house, it appeared the property had been left in quite a state.'
Giving evidence today, Sukhdip, a police officer for 11 years, told the court Dr Orji and his wife were 'aggressive' and had left him fearing for his life.
He said: 'We had previous dealings with the Orjis. They had been hostile and aggressive to my brother.
'On March 25, last year, we went into the house. Immediately, there was this stench of rotting food. I also noticed the smell of gas from a hob being left on.
'Whilst on the phone to a locksmith, Mr Orji pulled on to the driveway in a silver Renault Megane. He revved the car, which startled me.
'He came onto the driveway at speed - if I had stayed where I was I would have been hit.'
Sukhdip said when the couple left he heard Mr Orji mutter 'I will torch the place' before getting into their car.
The PC continued: 'He also said 'stay where you are', which I didn't understand at first. But then he revved his engine and drove directly at me.
'He then reversed and drove at my friend and then at my brother. If my friend Amrit had not moved, he would have had broken legs.
'The following day, my brother said Mr Orji and his wife's cars were back at the property.
'As we tried to secure the house again, because they had broken a door lock and smashed a window, they returned.
'I could see Mr Orji was looking to assault one of us. He looked like he wanted to hurt somebody and he just came barraging [sic] towards me like he was a rugby player. I couldn't hold him back and we fell to the ground.
'He was trying to fight me and my friend Martin Conlon came to help using reasonable force.'
The 400,000 detached house the couple were renting in Southampton, where the alleged incidents took place
Sukhdip said Mr Orji's wife then tried to attack his brother while he was on the phone to the police.
'She was charging towards him,' he said. 'I then recall hearing a clunking that made me feel sick to my gut and could see Mrs Orji had picked up a metal pole and had hit Martin over the top of the head.
'I was on the phone to the police and a bucket of murky water was thrown over me.
'I was drenched and feared I may catch a disease because I had seen the state of the house and didn't know where the water had come from.'
Navraj Singh told the court he had no option but to seek a court order forcing the Orjis from the house because they had stopped communicating with him and even changed the lock on the front door without telling him.
When he turned up on March 25 to arrange for a locksmith to come out, the lawyers also arrived and a blazing row began.
Mr Singh said: 'They had refused to communicate with me for some time. I would send them texts or call, but they would not respond.
'The day after we first turned up, they came back as we were trying to secure the property. I tried to tell them what we were doing, but Mr Orji just tried to push past.
'Mrs Orji got hold of a metal pole. I had my hands up and she hit my forearms with it. She also hit our friend Martin over the head with it.
'I was then pushed by her and she punched me in the face. There was some force. I had a swollen cheek.
'She also broke my iPhone when she knocked it from my hand.'
Former police officer Martin Conlon, who was allegedly struck with the pole, added: 'Mr Orji had hold of Sukh's collar and at that point I thought it was getting out of control.
'I stepped forward to try to restrain Mr Orji. Next thing, I received a heavy blow to the back of my head which put me down on my knee, I was disorientated. I saw Mrs Orji had a metal bar in her hand.'
Dr Orji denies two count of using threatening words or behaviour with intent to cause fear and one of assault by beating, theft and criminal.
His wife denies three charges of assault by beating, and one of theft, using threatening words or behaviour with intent to cause fear, criminal damage and obstructing a police officer.
Dr Orji denies two count of using threatening words or behaviour with intent to cause fear and one of assault by beating, theft and criminal damage.
His wife denies three charges of assault by beating, and one of theft, using threatening words or behaviour with intent to cause fear, criminal damage and obstructing a police officer.
The trial continues.
I am Victor, I write reportage on sport news and latest metro happenings in Nigeria.
Posted: at 30-01-2019 10:17 PM (5 years ago) | Hero
Doyourworst at 30-01-2019 10:33 PM (5 years ago) (m)
What kind of nonsense story is this?....one sided story of an Indian man with his brother and friend. Until we hear from our brother, I reserve my comment.
Posted: at 30-01-2019 10:33 PM (5 years ago) | Gistmaniac
But what I don't understand is then not be able to buy their own house.am not even in their kind of wage and I can say I own a house worth close to that amount .
Posted: at 30-01-2019 10:48 PM (5 years ago) | Gistmaniac
Doyourworst at 30-01-2019 11:09 PM (5 years ago) (m)
Quote from: Noah147 on 30-01-2019 10:48 PM
But what I don't understand is then not be able to buy their own house.am not even in their kind of wage and I can say I own a house worth close to that amount .
I can smell the Odour from your lies. We are talking of £400,000. Not 400,000 Naira. Ewu.
Posted: at 30-01-2019 11:09 PM (5 years ago) | Gistmaniac
willyking at 31-01-2019 06:21 AM (5 years ago) (m)
Quote from: Noah147 on 30-01-2019 10:48 PM
But what I don't understand is then not be able to buy their own house.am not even in their kind of wage and I can say I own a house worth close to that amount .
U don't own a house yet, what U have is a mortgage house which is not guarantee that U can Finnish payment in Ur life time is more or less like a rented house, if U want to own a house and be called a landlord come to Nigeria and build a house with 30,000 pounds Ur house will be the talk of the city please stope living in dreams and come to reality..
Posted: at 31-01-2019 06:21 AM (5 years ago) | Gistmaniac
U don't own a house yet, what U have is a mortgage house which is not guarantee that U can Finnish payment in Ur life time is more or less like a rented house, if U want to own a house and be called a landlord come to Nigeria and build a house with 30,000 pounds Ur house will be the talk of the city please stope living in dreams and come to reality..
May be if you educate your self how mortgage works then you might be able to write something more meaningful than this lots of nonsense and ingnorant stuff you just spits out.mortgage is a lone that you don't necessarily have to finish it you can sell it and get what they call an equity on the house which means is like a savings what you pay into it you can get back and more especially if You sell when house prices are booming,so brother the moral of my story is a mortgage is like an investments that I can cash out anytime I feel ready to downsize or relocate.thank me later for this piece of information I feel you and the other guy do need it.
Posted: at 31-01-2019 08:13 AM (5 years ago) | Gistmaniac
I DONT N=UNDERSTAND THIS AT ALL . THE ORJI'S WERE JUST VERY ACTIVE ON THEIR LANDLORD WHILE THE LANDLORD AND HIS SUPPORTERS STOOD WITHOUT DOING ANYTHING? I STRONGLY BELIEVE THE REPORTER OR THE COURT IS BIAS. THEY CANT JUST BE REPORTING THE ORJI'S ALONE THIS IS A CASE OF TWO PEOPLE FIGHTING.
Posted: at 31-01-2019 09:40 AM (5 years ago) | Newbie
Kormeijama at 31-01-2019 09:49 AM (5 years ago) (m)
Quote from: Noah147 on 30-01-2019 10:48 PM
But what I don't understand is then not be able to buy their own house.am not even in their kind of wage and I can say I own a house worth close to that amount .
Thanks, i wonder what two highly or modest earners have been doing with rentals. Most probably on grugs, gambling or high flying life styles. A lecturer and a lawyer why not mortgage. But their appearance tells a lot- shabby and annoying.
Posted: at 31-01-2019 09:49 AM (5 years ago) | Gistmaniac
willyking at 31-01-2019 11:42 AM (5 years ago) (m)
Quote from: Noah147 on 31-01-2019 08:13 AM
May be if you educate your self how mortgage works then you might be able to write something more meaningful than this lots of nonsense and ingnorant stuff you just spits out.mortgage is a lone that you don't necessarily have to finish it you can sell it and get what they call an equity on the house which means is like a savings what you pay into it you can get back and more especially if You sell when house prices are booming,so brother the moral of my story is a mortgage is like an investments that I can cash out anytime I feel ready to downsize or relocate.thank me later for this piece of information I feel you and the other guy do need it.
thanks but my point is straight forward U don't still own a house as far as U are still paying every thing U said I knew them before, I will still advice u come and build ur house in Nigeria so U can see the difference between a landlord and mortgage payer I know ur level I was once like U I have been there I know how I feel when I first got my mortgage house so take my advice come home and build a house okey..
Posted: at 31-01-2019 11:42 AM (5 years ago) | Gistmaniac
Thanks, i wonder what two highly or modest earners have been doing with rentals. Most probably on grugs, gambling or high flying life styles. A lecturer and a lawyer why not mortgage. But their appearance tells a lot- shabby and annoying.
Thanks for your commet ,that's my point exactly because is actually cheaper to have a mortgage in UK than to rent.
Posted: at 31-01-2019 12:32 PM (5 years ago) | Gistmaniac
thanks but my point is straight forward U don't still own a house as far as U are still paying every thing U said I knew them before, I will still advice u come and build ur house in Nigeria so U can see the difference between a landlord and mortgage payer I know ur level I was once like U I have been there I know how I feel when I first got my mortgage house so take my advice come home and build a house okey..
Appreciate that I know what you mean by coming home and build.That too is a good idea but at this point in my life with kids and family here may be is the best thing for now, and in the future that's is also a plan.never meant to rude or disrespectful to anyone just can't stand when people that don't know you or what you got going on jump on a keyboard and feel the need to call you a liar or been condersending. God bless our hustle .
Posted: at 31-01-2019 12:38 PM (5 years ago) | Gistmaniac
Doyourworst at 31-01-2019 07:32 PM (5 years ago) (m)
Quote from: Noah147 on 31-01-2019 12:38 PM
Appreciate that I know what you mean by coming home and build.That too is a good idea but at this point in my life with kids and family here may be is the best thing for now, and in the future that's is also a plan.never meant to rude or disrespectful to anyone just can't stand when people that don't know you or what you got going on jump on a keyboard and feel the need to call you a liar or been condersending. God bless our hustle .
You still remain a Maga!...believe it or not. All this bragging won't get you anywhere.
Posted: at 31-01-2019 07:32 PM (5 years ago) | Gistmaniac
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